Russia vows to shoot down ‘ALL flying objects’ over Syria – including US warplanes – after claiming Washington downed Syrian jet because it supports terrorists

Stand-off means countries will now stop cooperating in the skies over Syria

By Mark Hodge, Tom Newton Dunn, Political Editor and James Beal, US Editor

19th June 2017, 1:00 pm

Updated: 20th June 2017, 1:24 am

RUSSIA has vowed to shoot down all RAF and US jets in western Syria in a dramatic escalation of tensions.

Moscow issued the threat to coalition planes and drones in retaliation for a US Navy fighter downing a Syrian plane.

Reuters

A US fighter jet F/A-18E Super Hornet shot down a Syrian military aircraft

It called it an “act of aggression” which violated international law.

But British defence chiefs insisted RAF operations against IS would not be halted.

The Syrian regime’s Su-22 was targeted after it ignored warnings to stop bombing US-backed fighters in Raqqa province on Sunday.

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Smoke rises from buildings following a reported air strike on a rebel-held area in the southern Syrian city of Daraa on June 14#

The Russian Defence Ministry said: "Any flying objects discovered west of the Euphrates river will be tracked as aerial targets by Russia's air defences."

Vladimir Putin's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said a new set of US sanctions that can be imposed on the Kremlin will lead Russia to "retaliate".

The Defence Ministry said it was suspending its interaction with America on preventing air incidents over Syria from June 19.

Deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov added: “This strike has to be seen as a continuation of America’s line to disregard the norms of international law”.

But a No10 spokeswoman said: “Air operations continue and de-confliction measures are ongoing. We call on Russia to continue to use these measures. We want all parties to focus on the fight against Daesh in Iraq and Syria.”

PM Theresa May added: “There are deconfliction arrangements in place, and they shall continue”.

The US warplane downed a Su-22M4 fighter jet belonging to Syrian Arab Air Force (SyAAF) near Rusafa town at 6.43pm local time on Sunday.

In a statement, the US Central Command said the plane was downed “in collective self-defence of Coalition-partnered forces” identified as fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces near Tabqah.

It said that two hours earlier, forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad attacked SDF fighters in the town of Ja’Din south of Tabqah, “wounding a number of SDF fighters and driving the SDF from the town”.

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The guided-missile destroyer USS Porter fires a Tomahawk land attack missile on April 7 in the Mediterranean Sea